Re: Viola - Rape Connotation?

As a French-speaker, I would say that this is not a problem. Viola has a different sound to violer - I don't think the connection would be made any more than people would think of 'violate' when they see Viola (not often). However, the problem may be worse in Spanish. As I am not a fluent speaker I can't say for sure, but from my knowledge their accent would make it sound a lot closer to the word for he/she rapes ... but I'm not sure.
If you're not planning on living in a Spanish-speaking country, I don't see it would be a problem, though, as most people think of other things when they see the name - the instrument, violets, the Shakespearean character, etc. Also, the name is not excessively uncommon, which I think it would be if the rape connection had turned out to be a problem.
I think you should go for Viola (very pretty), especially as Scarlett seems to be getting quite popular.